Deodhar Trophy 2018, Final Preview: Karnataka favourites to add another trophy to their cabinet

Dharmendrasinh Jadeja (India B)

Jadeja’s old-ball burst has pegged back the opposition on a number of occasions. The left-arm spinner uses his tall frame to good effect extracting bounce as well as turn even on docile tracks. Line and Length being his forte, Jadeja will be looking to lead the bowling attack from the front and utilize all his experience to bother Karnataka’s batting order.

Mayank Agarwal (Karnataka)

The right-handed batsman has not only been able to ignite hope in the Karnataka’s camp but has also been the pillar of their batting strength. He announced himself for a larger scene having piled up runs across formats this season. The team will expect him to play another inning of an anchor, as that can eventually help their side add another trophy to their cabinet.

Playing Combination

Karnataka

Karun Nair will open the batting alongside Agarwal. The stabilizer, Samarth R who has his distinguished repertoire of shots will take the all-important number 3 spot. The top three will be followed by in-form Pavan Deshpande at number 4 spot, Stuart Binny, Krishnappa Gowtham, and wicketkeeper-batsman CM Gautam need to contribute with the bat for the team to put up a performance at par with their potential.

Karnataka’s bowling unit looks pretty capable of dislodging the opposition batting with K Gowtham in red-hot form. Gowtham, along with Prasidh proved to be best among many for Karnataka this season. The experience of Binny will be crucial for the team to go all the way as well.

Probable XI: Mayank Agarwal, R Samarth, Karun Nair (C), CM Gautham (wk), Pavan Deshpande, Aniruddha Joshi, Shreyas Gopal, Krishnappa Gowtham, Sharath BR, Prasidh Krishna, T Pradeep

India B

It is unlikely that India B will tinker with their opening combination as Abhimanyu Easwaran will be accompanied by the man-in-form Srikar Bharat. Vihari will certainly bat at number 3, followed by the skipper Shreyas Iyer and the reliable Manoj Tiwary.

India B’s bowling unit has been on song thus far in this tournament. Having said that, Jayant Yadav whose batting skills came as a boon for India B needs to move the ball. While Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, Umesh Yadav, and Kaul have done a good job for their side by providing wickets at the right time.

Probable XI: Abhimanyu Easwaran, Srikar Bharat(w), G H Vihari, Shreyas Iyer (C), Manoj Tiwary, Siddhesh Lad, Jayant Yadav, Umesh Yadav, Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, Siddarth Kaul, K Khaleel Ahmed.